Houston – Senior Lindsey Bienski got the Bearkats on the board early, but a golden goal for the Cougars led to the Sam Houston State soccer team’s (1-4-1) 2-1 overtime loss at the University of Houston, Friday night.

At the 6:17 mark, Micaela Birt passed the ball up the field to Johnson on a breakaway. Maneuvering the ball past a pair of UH defenders, Johnson sent a cross into the box to Bienski who netted her second goal of the season to give SHSU an early 1-0 lead.

Trying to make a comeback, UH fired off a shot attempt in the eighth minute but it flew right into the hands of senior goalkeeper Christina Hendershot (1-4-1). Hendershot tallied four more saves before the Cougars struck back.

With two minutes remaining in the first half, the Cougars pushed the ball down the field. On a cross from the right side, UH’s Nolin Packer connected with Amy Nguyen who snuck the equalizing goal by Hendershot to make it a 1-1 match.

Senior defender Carly English went straight to work after the break and unleashed the first shot of the second half in the 46th minute. However, her attempt went straight to UH goalkeeper Samantha Cude – her only save of the night.

The Kats totaled two more shots in the second half and the Bearkat defense held off the Cougars to keep the match at one goal apiece – forcing overtime play.

Making her sixth save of the night, Hendershot held the Cougars back after Jazmin Grant took the first shot in the overtime period. However, UH’s Desiree Bowen scored the golden goal in the 98th minute after she lifted a shot over Hendershot’s head to the Cougars the 2-1 win.

The Kats return home to Pritchett Field on Sunday, Sept. 9 for a 1 p.m. match against Little Rock. Live Stats will be available for the match. For all the latest information on the Sam Houston State soccer team, visit gobearkats.com or follow @BearkatsSOC on Twitter.